What excites a glass conservator even more than a new puzzle to put together? How about a brand new room, with lots more space to put the puzzles on!
The Museum’s conservator, Stephen Koob, extolled the virtues of the newly renovated conservation lab at the Museum, which officially opened on February 5. “It is almost twice the size as the previous lab and it offers the conservation department much more visibility within the Museum, so we can host groups, teach conservators in training, and have more rooms for interns to get hands-on experience.”
As artists working in glass continue to stretch the limits of the material, creating pieces in larger scale, using adhesives, and combining different types of glass, the Museum’s need for expanded conservation facilities has increased. The new work room’s size and configuration allows the team to rearrange tables within the space to accommodate larger and differently shaped pieces of glass. In addition to the expanded space, the room also offers more appropriate lighting, with large windows that let in a great deal of northern light, the best type for artistic reconstruction.
“Our goal is to leave the collection in better shape than we found it…not just for this generation, but for generations to come,” says Stephen. “This new work space will help us with that goal.”